Interview: Snow by Kathryn Hewitt





Title: Snow
Author: Kathryn Hewitt

Publisher: Westbow Press

Publication Date: May, 2012
Pages: 308

Genre: Young Adult
Source: Paperback from Publisher

Summary (from the Author):  How do you know, at fifteen, what love and affection really mean? Ruth learned all too soon that love is commitment, and affection has a price. But who will ultimately make the commitment, and who will pay the price?

At fifteen, Ruth thought she had her life planned out. That is until she met Luke, a charming new cadet from the local military school. After entering into a seemingly harmless teenage romance, Luke's possessive attitude and subtle remarks begin to undermine Ruth's confidence, sending her into an emotional tailspin.

A beautiful young girl is suddenly lost in a grown-up world, trying desperately to hang on to a love she thought would last forever. Shattered dreams and hopeless tears become the bricks that build walls around Ruth; yet just below her broken heart, a beautiful vessel is being formed.

Join Ruth on her wedding day, five years later, as her childhood friend helps her journey back to face the demons of her past.

  

1. When and Why did you begin writing?

A. I’ve been writing poetry since I was old enough to know what a poem was. I remember in sixth grade I starting writing a suspense novel just for fun, but I didn’t get into writing as a career until about five years ago when I decided to start writing “Snow”.

2. What inspired you to pen your first novel?

A. I became pregnant at fifteen. My mom was determined that I didn’t become a statistic, so I continued my education and went on to college while raising my son. At the time of my pregnancy and when he was an infant, it was extremely difficult and on more than one occasion I thought I couldn’t do it, but I did. I want other girls, who find themselves with unwanted or unplanned pregnancies, to know that they can do it, too.

3. How has environment/upbringing colored your writing?

A. This particular book is set in the South. I was born and raised in South Carolina and know little more than the South. I love Southern hospitality, the faith people have down here, and yes, even the heat. I think the South in itself brings color to any novel.

4. Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?

A. God is listening. When people are in a crisis, they cry out to God, whether they are believers or not. I want every person who reads this book to know that God is there. He hears us and He does care. Sometimes our circumstances don’t turn out the way we want them to, but God sees the bigger picture and everything works out for the good of those who love Him. Miracles do happen when we pray. There is Hope in every situation.

5. How much of your work is realistic?

A. I draw most of my characters and ideas from real life circumstances. Then I put them into a fictitious world and build a story around them.

6. Is your novel based on someone you know or events in your own life?

A. This novel is based on a true story. For protection of the person and their family, I am choosing not to answer that question directly.

7. What are your current projects?

A. I am currently working on an adult novel that deals with temptations from social media, marriage, gossip, sexuality, and alcohol abuse. I am also working on the sequel to “Snow.”

8. What is “Snow” about?

A. It’s about a young girl who gets tangled up with a possessive boyfriend and finds herself having to decide between her boyfriend and her unborn child. There are several twists that will leave you holding your breath, wondering what will happen. “Snow” deals with sexual abstinence, teenage pregnancy, abortion, date rape, dating violence, prayer, and miracles. 

9. How did you come up with your title?

A. You have to read the book!! You’ll understand immediately once you read the novel, but I can’t give it away!

10. What was your favorite chapter or part to write?

A. My favorite part to write about has to be the conversations between the main character and her best friend. The best friend is a spin-off of my absolute best friend, so when I was writing I felt like I was talking to her in person. 

11. Are you pro-life? What about extreme circumstances? What about a woman's right to choose?

A. I am pro-life, always have been; however, I will be honest and say that when I was fifteen and pregnant the idea of an abortion was very tempting and was even suggested to me by more than one person. I am thankful, every time I look at my son, that I did not have it done. I believe in the strength of Jesus Christ. I believe that He will not give you more than you can bear and if a child was conceived from sexual abuse, rape, or if there is a medical condition then there is still a reason for that child. There is a plan and a purpose for everything in life, even the unpleasant things. 

I believe that women have the right to choose. I believe they have the right  to make the choice whether or not to have sex. If they choose to have sex and a pregnancy occurs as a result, then that woman must accept the responsibility and consequence of her actions. It's as simple as that. Every choice we make results in an outcome. We are responsible for making wise choices, so that we do not have to suffer the consequences of bad ones. 

12. I understand you were a teenage mother, is this book about you?

A. There are elements in this book that were derived from my circumstances.

13. What do you want to say to those who oppose your position?

A. God has given us free will. I have chosen to stand in belief of the Bible and the Lord Jesus Christ. If someone chooses a different position, that’s okay. That’s their choice. I believe that if everyone would stop being angry at other people’s difference of opinion, we’d be a much happier, better functioning nation. My heart is sad for every aborted child, and for the women who regret their decision. My hope, is that they find peace through salvation in Jesus.

14. Is this book strictly for Christians?

A. Absolutely not. The main character is a Christian and she is an active member of her church, so God and the Bible are themes that run throughout the book, but this book was not written for Christian readers. It was written for every girl who is thinking about having premarital sex, has done it already, or is faced with an unplanned pregnancy, and for their parents who just don’t know what to do. This book was written to bring hope to a seemingly hopeless situation.

15. How do you manage to write and be a stay at home mom of four boys?

A. Very sporadically! I sneak in about an hour during nap time, a couple hours after bed time, and sometimes half a day when my husband isn’t working. When it comes down to a dead line, my husband will hold down the home front while I go away for a few days of uninterrupted writing.

16. Your slogan, so to speak, is “bringing a message of Hope,” explain the     meaning behind this.

A. I know that there is Hope in every situation and circumstance. Without Hope, we have nothing. We might as well not even try. When you’re playing baseball, you walk up to the plate hoping to knock the ball out of the park. If you didn’t have that Hope, you would never even pick up the bat. In life, you have to have Hope in everything you do and in every situation, no matter how grim it seems. I want every novel I write to send a message of Hope through the circumstances of its characters.

17. What is your favorite Bible passage?

A. Psalm 71:20-21, “Though you have made me see troubles, many bitter and severe, you will restore my life again; you will bring me up from the depths of the earth. You will increase my honor and comfort me on every side.”

18. You say you are available for speaking engagements, what message will you speak on?

A. There are many messages I am able to speak on. My main focus is abstaining from sex until marriage. For a teenage group, I explain the meaning of dating, its origin, and why abstaining from sex until marriage is not just a “Christian” thing. For adults, there are several avenues I can go down, such as; the power of prayer, miracles, understanding your teenage daughter, and God’s grace.

19. Who is your favorite author and why?

A. Jane Austen. I am a hopeless romantic and I fall in love with her characters every time I read her books. I love her perspective on society and her boldness for speaking out against the constraints of marriage during that time. My favorite character has to be Elizabeth Bennett. I like to think I am like her.

20. What did you learn from writing this book?

A. Never give up. Even when you’re tired and hurting. When you feel like you can’t write another word, or your heart doesn’t have room for another ache, keep pressing on.

21. What is something interesting about you as a writer?

A. I am a horrible, terrible speller and my vocabulary is very, very small!

Kathryn Hewitt was born and raised in the small town of Camden, South Carolina. Breaking away from becoming a stereotype, she was an Honors Graduate and went on to study British Literature and Sociology at Charleston Southern University, inspiring to be a High School English teacher. 

Kathryn has a passion for teaching teenagers and reaching out to those who seem as though the world has closed the door. 

Because of her own experiences, including becoming a teenage mother at fifteen, Kathryn knows the value of life and the blessings it contains. Understanding the importance of making wise decisions, Kathryn passionately seeks to instill that wisdom into the minds of every young lady she encounters. The inspiration for Kathryn's writings comes from her own experiences, and she is never afraid to speak the truth that others refuse to acknowledge.

Kathryn married in 2005 and is a stay at home mom with her four sons. She and her family currently live in the same town she grew up.

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